Swiss Army Blanket Chair

SOOOOO, A few days ago, whilst prowling the internets, I came across this picture….

Everybody knows that I am all about a Hudson Bay Blanket. My Pendleton obsession runs a close second to my glass ornament fetish. (Both border on the fringe of 12 step program help) This picture totally reminded me that we have a very similar chair that belonged to the previous owner in our living room. That’s the “formal” room at the front of the house where Harley sleeps all day – also the only room sans a television. It is possibly because of the dog smell and lack of TV viewing that we don’t really use this room for much.

When we were at the house for the home inspection, I snapped this picture of a heap of crap the previous owner had in the garage.

See it there? Underneath what could have possibly once been a side table and some scrubbing pads? Pretty Groovy chair, right? Obviously has a cool 1950s vibe. The cushion covers are hainus in person…olive-green-pea-green-chartruse pollyester stripe……. Now the chair shape, on the other hand, I knew I could do some magic with that. Jamie was eying the lawn mover and weed eater to add on to the closing, I was scanning this chair and an orange light fixture that has yet to be used anywhere in the house. But I digress. We offered 200$ for crap in the garage…the previous owner excepted.

Here’s my second piece of chair inspiration…

Beautiful, isn’t it? Mid-century office mixed with Swiss Army Blanket….AAAAhhhhhhh (wheels are turning ) See where I’m headed with this post folks?

I posted this picture on my Pinterest page, and my dear friend Amy quickly informed me that this chair was from her shop, Red Barn Mercantile, a few years ago… Small world.

Hudson Bay blankets are about 200 dollars….Swiss Army Blankets, on the other hand, are much more reasonably priced. Mostly because there are so many reproductions available……if you aren’t “married” to the idea of 100% wool, that is. Since I plan on chopping this baby up, 100% wool isn’t that crucial…actually, a little poly in the mix will keep it all-the-more stain resistant.

Every online military surplus shop I tried was completely sold out of these blankets (in the 25$ range). Every time I placed an order, I would receive a follow up email refunding my purchase because they were no longer in stock. What the Hell? Of course, there are plenty available for 300 bones.

Maybe I could do some shopping in person, like people did in the olden days. We took a chance and hit up The Army Store in Garland Texas. I’ve driven by this shop hundreds of times, it’s 2 blocks from H. Depot, but Never been inside. Honestly, it looks a little, well, ummm, sketchy. I’m giving them props because I completely loved the place. There was inspiration hanging from the ceilings. Literally, HANGING FROM THE CEILINGS. Boiled wool peacoats, vintage foot lockers, silk parachutes, and just like I wanted …….”mostly” wool military blankets…

50% wool, and 50% something else…Not really sure what the “Something else” is, but who really cares? They were 22 bucks each. We bought 4. Navy with a reddish stripe, grey with a yellow stripe, and (big sigh of relief ) brown with a red stripe.

We bought 2 of the brown. These will be our new chair cushions. Too bad they are the only blankets with a little whip-stitch around the edge…because it will just be hacked off in the process.

They also have this crudely sewn cross…..

After much consideration, we decided to seam-rip the cross off, and focus on the red stripe as the detail of the cushions. Genuine Swiss Army blankets have a cross woven into the red stripe. This sad sad cross ain’t fool’n nobody.

I kinda love this project, because I have already done most of my part. The remainder is left up to my seamstress. ( under my supervision , natch ) I can sew a pretty decent pillow, and occasional Christmas stocking, but I feel much more confident having a professional line up the 2 stripes on 2 separate cushions.

I went through a similar dilemma a few years ago trying to decide if I wanted to pay a framer or just tape a cherished picture into an Ikea frame……I assure you, I am WAAAYYYYY happier with the professional framing job.